The previous thread was archived so I can't reply there, which is the only reason that I am starting a new thread.
https://www.ukhillwalking.com/forums/off_belay/yet_another_recommend_us_a_lapt...
Thanks again to all who replied, I've read everything and thought about it all.
Chromebooks are a no.
Refurb....yes if it was me buying for me, but it's my Dad buying for my Mum and they are old fashioned and will want the feel of buying new from a shop. Possibly negotiable.
MS Office - not an issue. I'll see if we can wean her onto Libre Office (I am testing it at the moment, the "Word" equivalent seems fine to me, just so long as there is cross compatibility; I see their ".docx" file format states "Word 2007-365"). If it's no good then we put MS Office on in some form or other.
I am kind of "nearly there" but one thing I've not looked into, which a few posters mentioned, is the processor.
My idea of specification goes as far as screen size, resolution, RAM, and SSD capacity.
Perusing a few options today I noticed there was considerable price difference on otherwise identical machines, according to what processor they had. Makes sense I guess, but I am totally lost when it comes to that.
e.g. how much "worse" is an i5-1035G1 than an i5-1021G1?
Bearing in mind that her processing needs should be minimal.
I am looking at models with 8Gb RAM and 256Gb SSD.
Actually pondering a Lenovo 2-in-1, I think she might like the novelty of having a "sort of" tablet, for Skype video calls etc. She gets on well enough with her smartphone and she has previously shown interest in the Kindle Fire (which I talked her out of!)
Something like this
https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/lenovo-ideapad-flex...
(and for the sake of £30 we could stick Office on for a year)
Part of me is wondering "what's the catch"? In terms of spec this seems competitive with some standard laptops yet we have a touch screen and the flip mechanics to pay for. Is it that it has a weaker processor, and is this going to matter?
More generally are these things a bit of a niche/novelty that just end up being used as standard laptops 99% of the time by 99% of the owners?
Thanks in advance, again!